The nation continues to watch developments in the race for president, stemming from Donald Trump's offensive comments about women caught on tape in 2005. The fallout has Wisconsin state lawmakers talking. They're pondering whether the controversy surrounding Trump will affect races for the Legislature here.

Wisconsin state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald has backed fellow Republican Trump for months. At a WisPolitics.com luncheon on Tuesday, he was asked about Trump's boasts that as a celebrity, he could freely kiss and grope women.

UPDATE: The full state Senate is slated to take up the bill on February 16, 2016.

Original Piece:

On Thursday, GOP members of a state Senate committee advanced an amended bill to the full Senate that could ease the process of private companies buying municipal water utilities. The Republican-controlled Assembly has already said yes.

Wisconsin could soon assign a watchdog to each state agency. The person’s job would be to guard against government waste and fraud.

Some Republican lawmakers are pushing a bill that would set up an Office of Inspector General. It would employ more than a dozen new hires who would fan out among departments. The proposal is divisive.

This fall in Madison, a continued partisan divide seems likely as state lawmakers get busy. Republicans and Democrats are pushing widely different agendas. A couple factors -- including the end of Gov. Walker's presidential campaign -- could influence what bills pass.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos says Republicans, who hold the majority in his house and the Senate, have a full slate of business. He outlined the party's plans at the Capitol late last week.

Republican Sen. Van Wanggaard and Rep. Joel Kleefisch invited city officials to an informational hearing on Wednesday, to explain a computer malfunction affecting the Milwaukee Police Department. The problem has resulted in several videotaped interrogations being inaccessible.

The two GOP legislators chair committees related to public safety and criminal justice, but Milwaukee Democrats accused the two of calling the hearing simply to slug the city politically.

The Legislature’s budget committee, on Wednesday, began digging into Gov. Walker’s proposed budget for Wisconsin. Before the meeting, Republican leaders removed 14 policy items the governor had tucked into his plan. 14 of 49.

Among those removed was Walker’s proposal to make the Natural Resources Board an advisory one.